Too Late Mr. White! I'm Married To Your Rival Now novel Chapter 312

Aria's POV

Perhaps sensing my profound tension, steered the conversation into entirely new waters.

"I'll tell you a secret," he said, his voice a low, intimate murmur, cutting through the anxiety that hummed between us. "One about my first love."

"What?" The word slipped out before I could stop it, my voice tinged with an embarrassing hint of jealousy I couldn't quite hide.

"Why did you fall for her?" I asked, trying to sound casual while something uncomfortable twisted in my stomach.

Aiden's lips curved into that half-smile that always made my pulse quicken. "She reminded me not to dwell in past sorrows during my lowest point. Without her, I might never have achieved what I have today."

I bit my lip, gathering my courage before asking the question burning inside me: "Do you still like her now?"

His eyebrow arched slightly as he leaned back against his chair, tilting his head in that infuriatingly attractive way. "Does Mrs. Carter hope I do or don't?"

I felt my face flush. "But whether you like her or not is already a fact. It's not like if I say I hope you don't, you'll tell me you don't."

Aiden studied me for a moment before answering simply: "I do."

My heart sank.

Logically, I knew it was perfectly normal that Aiden, at thirty, had liked someone before. Hadn't I been hung up on Liam White? But hearing him actually admit it still stung more than it should have.

I knew this jealousy was ridiculous—I was being petty—but I couldn't help it. Still, I forced my shoulders into a casual shrug. "She must be really beautiful."

"She is," he smiled. "Very beautiful."

"And probably very sweet too."

The amusement in Aiden's eyes deepened at my comment.

"That depends on who you ask," he said, lowering his gaze with a smile that seemed to hide secrets. "Sweet, but also quite spirited."

Watching his expression as he talked about her, I felt like someone had upended a bottle of vinegar in my chest. Everything inside me turned sour. I had to look away, swallowing hard against the lump in my throat.

"So why didn't you two end up together?" I finally asked, looking back at him.

If someone like Aiden had gotten together with his first love, where would that leave me? I couldn't shake the image of his smile when he described her. It made my chest ache in a way I wasn't prepared for.

I took a deep breath, pretending indifference as I waited for his answer.

"I don't know," he said.

"How can you not know?" I blurted out, genuinely confused. How could two people not know why they never got together? Was he messing with me? Or had they actually been together but broken up, and he just didn't want to tell me the full story?

Aiden just smiled without answering.

"Didn't you ever ask her?" I pressed, unable to let it go.

After a moment's silence, he said, "It's not really something I could ask."

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